Can't Tear Us Down: Building Sustainability in Intabazwe, South Africa

Authors

Brianna Guinigundo, University of Central FloridaFollow

Streaming Media

Files

Course Code

LDR

Course Number

3955

Faculty/Instructor

Dr. Mark Allen Poisel and Dr. Michael T. Callahan

Faculty/Instructor Email

mark.poisel@ucf.edu

About the Author

My name is Brianna Guinigundo and I am sincerely thankful to UCF High-Impact Practices for this present opportunity. This once-in-a-lifetime service-learning experience abroad would not have been possible without Dr. Mark Allen Poisel and Dr. Michael T. Callahan, for whom I owe immense gratitude for their guidance and facilitation. Much obliged to our Intabazwe community partner, Ms. Nonkulueko Mbehele and her family, most notably the pastor, for this incredible partnership and welcoming us into their home. Forever grateful to my classmate collaborators Haley Euwema, Emilia Carpio, Nia Forde, Brooke Leggario, Colson Baggs, Sime Uppal, Maria Isabel Canamary Otoch, and most especially Jacqueline Zamitalo for her dedication to our school construction project.

Abstract, Summary, or Creative Statement

Service-learning study abroad trip to South Africa 2024.

My service project was to respond to our Intabazwe community partner's needs of replacing the original tin school that was crumbling down and construct a brand-new concrete school building from the ground up. This involved fundraising from January-March 2024 with my 8 other classmates to raise $7,000 to be used for the school building project. I researched the different required materials and created a budget accordingly. With this fundraising, we were able to partner with the community's locals so they could begin the physical construction in April before my classmates and I arrived in-country. When my classmates and I arrived in May, we primed and painted the entire new school building, both the interior and exterior, and decorated the finishing touches inside the classrooms. It was an honor to make a difference in the community's education and environment, and to grow as a leader and world citizen myself in turn.

Keywords

school; education; South Africa; service-learning; project; service; leadership; community; study abroad; abroad; trip; kids; culture; construction; budget; plan; collaboration; teamwork

Recommended Citation

Guinigundo, Brianna, "Can't Tear Us Down: Building Sustainability in Intabazwe, South Africa" (2024). High Impact Practices Student Showcase Fall 2024. 64.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/hip-2024fall/64